Cardiovascular system: everything is flowing smoothly

The heart pumps 290 litres of our lifeblood per hour through our blood vessels and thus ensures that every cell in the body is supplied. The vessels that lead away from the heart are referred to as arteries. Due to the pressure of the heart, the blood in the arteries in the proximity of the heart reaches the systemic circulation with a speed of approx. 5 metres per second. The blood vessels that lead back to the heart are the veins. The arteries branch on their way through the body and become finer and finer. The finest blood vessels are called capillaries. They ensure exchange of substances with tissue.

What are cardiovascular symptoms?

The noticeable symptoms of a variety of diseases affecting the heart or blood vessels are referred to as cardiovascular symptoms. Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death in Western industrial nations. Accordingly, cardiovascular symptoms often occur as a warning sign. You should take them seriously and review your lifestyle as the consequences can be serious and even life-threatening. Cardiovascular disorders vary extremely and affect very many people – increasingly more younger people, especially in industrial nations.

What is cardiovascular disease?

A variety of diseases and symptoms can be traced back to cardiovascular disorders. The most important include:

Blood pressure (hypertension)

Coronary heart disease (CHD), angina pectoris Deposits in the coronary arteries, that is the blood vessels that supply the heart, cause these vessels to narrow. The consequences of this are: Impaired circulation and, thus, impaired supply of oxygen to the heart. This is noticed by pain and tightness in the chest (angina pectoris)

Heart attack Interruption to the supply of blood to parts of the cardiac muscle which can result in the death of cardiac muscle cells. This usually happens due to narrowing or blockage (caused by thrombosis or arteriosclerosis) of the coronary arteries, that is the blood vessels that supply the cardiac muscle.

Cardiac insufficiencyThe heart is no longer strong enough to pump enough blood to supply all organs.

Inflammatory heart disease (endocarditis, pericarditis)The cardiac valves as well as the interior wall of the heart (endocardium) or the tissue layers around the chambers of the heart (pericardium, epicardium) can become inflamed

ArrhythmiasThe heart rate can be abnormally disrupted. It can be raised (tachycardia) or lowered (bradycardia) or irregular (skipped heartbeats).

Blood pressure that is too low (hypotension)Cardiac disease, hormonal shifts, disorders of the nervous system and other factors may result in blood pressure that is too low

Functional cardiac SymptomsThese are heart-related symptoms such as shortness of breath, palpitations or also pain in the chest area. They are felt clearly and cause sufferers a lot of anxiety. However, the cause is not heart disease.

What kinds of cardiovascular symptoms are there?

The symptoms vary as widely as the types of disease: Circulatory problems, a feeling of tightness and pain in the chest area, anxiety, palpitations, weakness ...

Circulatory problems occur:

When the blood pressure is low

When there is cardiac insufficiency

In situations, where extremely high demands are placed on the circulation (heat, extreme physical or psychological stresses, dehydration)

These symptoms are typical for circulatory problems:

Dizziness, especially rotary vertigo

Feeling of weakness, feeling worn out

Declining physical performance

Circulatory collapse

It is important to have a doctor clarify the causes of cardiovascular symptoms. A general practitioner can often diagnose cardiovascular disease – in many cases they will refer you to a cardiologist for a more detailed examination and diagnosis. It may be necessary to take drugs to support the heart and/or the circulation and to treat cardiovascular disease.

What are vegetative functional cardiovascular symptoms?

Cardiovascular symptoms can be organic or functional. Organic means that an organ is the cause of the disease – in this case the heart itself or the blood vessels. Functional symptoms are described as symptoms for which there is no identifiable organic cause. The causes for this are often in our vegetative nervous system. The vegetative nervous system is the part of the nervous system that controls the bodily functions involuntarily, i.e., it is not influenced by us. For example, it raises the pulse and blood pressure in stressful situations. This can clearly be felt as a racing heart over a long period of time – without the heart having an organic disorder. This is a functional arrhythmia.

Which risk factors favour the development of cardiovascular disease?

The factors that cannot be influenced include age, sex and familial predisposition. Thus, more men than women suffer from cardiovascular disease. The risk also increases with increasing age.

Risk factors that we have control over are:

Excess weight (obesity)

Lack of physical exercise

Smoking

Stress

Poor diet that promotes arteriosclerosis and diabetes mellitus, for example,

The more risk factors that are present, the greater the likelihood for cardiovascular disease as well as secondary disease such as heart attack and stroke.

How can you prevent cardiovascular disease?

Plenty of exercise, preferably long walks in the fresh air than intensive Sport!